Katy June Friesen had the opportunity to interview Jeffrey M. Pilcher, an expert on Mexican food. In this interview they discussed the origins of the taco and some highlights include:

• One theory suggests that the word ‘taco’ has its origins in the dynamite (paper covered gunpowder) used in Mexican silver mines.
• Tacos are a relatively modern invention that can be traced back to the 1700s.
• Tacos were first mentioned in the United States in 1905, at a time when Mexicans began to migrate to the United States.
• They were seen as lower class food until the children of the original Mexican migrants began to advance economically.
• What is widely considered a standard taco today is really an amalgam of American and Mexican cuisine. Hamburger meat, cheddar cheese, iceberg lettuce and tomatoes are all signs of American influences.
• Hard shell tacos did not become mainstream until around the 1940s.

To read more about Lebanese-Mexican tacos, why tacos are like doughnuts, why Taco Bell has been unsuccessful in Mexico, the role that sexualization has played in the adoption of the taco, and why eating a taco was described as “biting a serpent” read the full interview here.

Source: Smithsonian

Via: Kottke